Wolves sold for £10 - with £30m strings attached

Although only £10 is actually changing hands, Hayward insisted that the former owner of Redrow construction company commit £30m towards improving Mick McCarthy's squad as part of the deal.

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  Former Republic of Ireland boss McCarthy will remain in charge, as will chief executive Jez Moxey, as Hayward has stood by the promise made in October 2003 when he said he would move aside for nothing - as long as the potential buyers committed to extra funds.

  "Sir Jack has done the most benevolent thing you can ever ask of anybody in football," said Moxey, "it is genuinely unique.

  "He's a man of his word who has delivered what he said he would do. It has taken a while but we think this will give us extra impetus to get to the next stage.

  "We are absolutely satisfied making this announcement. We believe Steve Morgan has the club's best interests at heart and he has the financial resources to take us where we want to go.

  "We decided on £10 because Sir Jack said he wanted to frame it. He won't spent it. He could have sold the club for £1. But we thought it would be more difficult to frame. He wants it framed so he can look at it and say: 'That was worth £50m to me, once'."   Morgan has twice failed in a bid to buy his first-love Liverpool, the last time in late 2004. A self-made man who developed Redrow Homes into a huge conglomerate, he can comfortably match Hayward's spending criteria.

  His wealth is estimated at £450m - and he has reportedly banked around half of that after selling off interests in various businesses - including Redrow - during the past five years.

  His money will be welcome, although in sharp contrast to the practices of the past 12 months. Using McCarthy's keen eye for a bargain, Wolves have been re-invented since Glenn Hoddle walked out.

  Bargain signings like Michael Kightly and Andy Keogh have helped transform the club's fortunes from the days when Hayward, now an octogenarian who is based in the Bahamas, described himself as "a golden tit" for ploughing in too much money.

  Moxey added: "The intention is to continue to run the club as we have done. Mick's job is to identify players and strengthen the team. We are not going to go out and spend loads and loads of money.

  "But the £30m will be used exclusively for the benefit of Wolverhampton Wanderers. We are a football club."  

Asked whether he had met Morgan, McCarthy replied: "Yes" but refused to divulge any further details. Although this will put more pressure on him ahead of the new season, it was a problem he clearly relished.

  "I want to take this club forward," he said, "and this money is for the club's development. But the strategy won't change.

"I like good players. And if I can get good players for £25,000 instead of £250,000 or £600,000 instead of £6m, why not? The hardest part is finding them for next to nothing. If I can make us better and stronger - happy days.

  "I'm looking forward to it. These will be exciting times. We had an exciting season - although it came to a fairly abrupt end - and this is something to look forward to. There's no downside to it. None at all."